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Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR Race Car (C208)
The Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR Race Car (C208) is a prototype race car featured in the Choro-Q series; it appeared in Choro-Q Advance. Real life info The CLK-GTR Race Car was a GT1 class prototype race car that would run in the FIA GT Championship series in 1997 and 1998. To begin development, Mercedes-Benz purchased a disused McLaren F1 GTR, and put on its own bodywork, which shared some parts with the production Mercedes-Benz CLK, including the front grille, headlights, and dashboard, and engine, which was a 6.0-liter LS600 V12, producing 600 hp and 538 lb/ft of torque, mated to a 5-speed sequential transmission. Soon after, two CLK-GTR Race Cars were entered in the 1997 FIA GT Hockenheim 4 Hour race, but were plagued by reliability issues. However, the CLK-GTRs began improving over the season, with one car finishing 2nd to one of the McLaren F1 GTRs by less than a second. At the Nürburgring, Mercedes-Benz entered three cars, with two of them finishing 1-2. The CLK-GTR won 5 more races, claiming the team championship and the drivers' championship for driver Bernd Schneider. In 1998, the CLK-GTR ran in the first two FIA races for team AMG Mercedes before being replaced by the CLK LM, although Persson Motorsport entered two CLK-GTRs for the entire year. Mercedes-Benz was planning on returning to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1998, with the CLK LM as an upgraded version of the CLK-GTR. The CLK LM would use the 6.0-liter M119 HL V8 from the Sauber C9/C11, but with the turbochargers removed and other revisions. As for the bodywork, the nose and roof were lowered, the cooling ducts on the front corners was replaced with a large frontal opening, and a revised air intake was installed. Although the CLK LM qualified on the pole for the 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans and appeared to be quick, engine problems sidelined the two entries within the first few hours of the race. The CLK LM continued to compete in the FIA GT series, winning the remaining races, but Mercedes-Benz's success in the series led to other manufacturers withdrawing from the GT1 series, resulting in the class being canceled. For 1999, Mercedes-Benz returned to Le Mans, but in the LMGTP-class CLR, which was a modified version of the CLK LM with even lower bodywork. However, the CLRs had aerodynamic instabilities on the track's straightaways; one car went airborne in qualifiying and crashed, which resulted in the car being rebuilt, but went airborne again in the final practice session, landing on its roof. A second car went airborne four hours into the race, somersaulting into the air before landing in a field behind the safety barriers. As a result of these incidents, Mercedes-Benz withdrew the remaining car from the race, canceled the CLR program completely, and rule changes were made to both the Le Mans racing cars and the Le Mans racing circuit to improve the safety of the drivers. Choro-Q Advance The CLK-GTR Race Car (C208) is body 33 in Choro-Q Advance. Notes * The livery of the GT-One in Choro-Q Advance is based off the 1998 #2/#36 CLK-GTR/CLK LM. Car #2 ran in the FIA GT series, but since #2 was used by Team BMW Motorsport for its BMW V12 LM, the car was renumbered to #36 in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Appearances * Choro-Q Advance Category:Vehicles Category:European Vehicles